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An 'average household income' is over $50,000 in this country. But even that isn't very representative, because people actually start at the bottom and move through income quintiles through their life as they advance their careers and gain experience. I've never earned more than that and I still save money every month. If it meant having a roommate, I had a roommate. If it meant driving a shittier car than I wanted, that's what I did, so that I'd never have to say 'sorry' to myself when I was 65 years old and wanting to retire.
whatever other fucking distraction one can get from the misery of modern servitude
I look at what people have had to do over their lives through the ages and around the world and realize if you think what passes for work for most Americans is 'misery' and 'servitude' you need to broaden your horizons.
Sorry your capitalist system has not yet reduced me and countless others to work-eat-sleep-shit automatons.
The capitalist system made it possible for you and everyone you know to readily afford the miracle that is a modern computer. Are you oblivious to this? It's the capitalist system that made all the 'distractions' you apparently crave over saving for your own future.
Finally, you might also want to consider the waste of privately managed mutual funds and other investment schemes. That waste is sometimes referred to as profits
I enjoy the profits my savings earn. It allows them to snowball. Use your computer, your DSL connection, and your math skills to take advantage of Google Docs to create yourself a spreadsheet like follows:
Income Savings rate Saved Amount Earnings on Savings Accumulated Savings 14% 8% $- $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $- $2,840.00 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $227.20 $5,907.20 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $472.58 $9,219.78 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $737.58 $12,797.36 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $1,023.79 $16,661.15 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $1,332.89 $20,834.04 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $1,666.72 $25,340.76 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $2,027.26 $30,208.02 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $2,416.64 $35,464.66 $20,000.00 14% $2,840.00 $2,837.17 $41,141.84 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $3,291.35 $48,693.18 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $3,895.45 $56,848.64 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $4,547.89 $65,656.53 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $5,252.52 $75,169.05 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $6,013.52 $85,442.58 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $6,835.41 $96,537.98 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $7,723.04 $108,521.02 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $8,681.68 $121,462.70 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $9,717.02 $135,439.72 $30,000.00 14% $4,260.00 $10,835.18 $150,534.90 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $12,042.79 $168,257.69 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $13,460.62 $187,398.30 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $14,991.86 $208,070.17 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $16,645.61 $230,395.78 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $18,431.66 $254,507.44 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $20,360.60 $280,548.04 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $22,443.84 $308,671.88 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $24,693.75 $339,045.63 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $27,123.65 $371,849.28 $40,000.00 14% $5,680.00 $29,747.94 $407,277.23 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $32,582.18 $446,959.41 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $35,756.75 $489,816.16 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $39,185.29 $536,101.45 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $42,888.12 $586,089.57 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $46,887.17 $640,076.73 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $51,206.14 $698,382.87 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $55,870.63 $761,353.50 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $60,908.28 $829,361.78 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $66,348.94 $902,810.72 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $72,224.86 $982,135.58 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $78,570.85 $1,067,806.43 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $85,424.51 $1,160,330.94 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $92,826.48 $1,260,257.42 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $100,820.59 $1,368,178.01 $50,000.00 14% $7,100.00 $109,454.24 $1,484,732.25
I used 14% because FICA takes more than that out of your earnings. I picked 8% for the earnings rate because that's well below the average rate of return over time to be found in index funds of the S&P500. You could crank that down to 5% and still end up with a retirement income that was 2/3rds of your last working income. For fun you can add a column for 'dividend taxes' and see how taxes on savings melt the snowball and foster dependency on welfare systems instead of savings to fund retirement. Presuming you pay off your house instead of constantly using it as an ATM you'll have an income stream that doesn't even require you to touch your capital by retirement. The biggest problem this country faces is that too many people spend their youth as the grasshopper, and try to catch up to the ant when the math is no longer going to be on their side.
I'll take a legally guaranteed
Pardon the all caps, BUT THERE IS NO GUARANTEE! Supreme Court already decided Congress can change the game whenever they want, and they have, many times. I take that back, there's one guarantee, offered by no less than Alan Greenspan in Congressional testimony: "We can guarantee cash payments from here on out, what we cannot guarantee is the purchasing power of that cash." -Alan Greenspan during remarks on Social Security, Feb 16, 2005 You have to realize the real enemy is a system that allows the Federal Reserve to print 'money' at will. If counterfeiting was actually wealth building and not robbery, wouldn't the economy benefit from each of us having such a printing press in our homes? Politicians have foisted upon the nation a rob Peter to pay Paul retirement system that simply services consumption, instead of fostering one that rewards savings, which has the advantage of building up the capital base that allows for the productivity enhancements the result in computers and big screen TVs available at a fraction of the cost of only a decade ago.
The sad things is when you point out the flaws of the current system you're denigrated as uncaring, as though promoting a system with better outcomes represents caring less! Stick with politicians as benefactors and you'll end up with a miserable retirement compared to the ones who didn't (and then you'll probably clamor to seize more of their savings to improve your lot, all the while calling them 'selfish')
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